Recently, the Federal Reserve released its preliminary unaudited financial statements for 2023. Data shows that the Federal Reserve's operating losses will reach US$114.3 billion (approximately RMB 819.3 billion) in 2023, a record high.
High interest rates are one of the main reasons for the Fed's losses. Affected by the sharp increase in interest rates, the Federal Reserve will pay US$281.1 billion to financial institutions in 2023, compared with US$102.4 billion in 2022. Meanwhile, the Fed's bond interest holdings totaled $163.8 billion in 2023, compared with $170 billion in 2022.
02 IMF provides USD 639 million in financial support to Kenya
The Central Bank of Kenya recently stated that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has provided Kenya with 101.87 billion shillings (approximately US$638.9 million) in financial support in the past few months. The country is currently waiting for more funds from the International Monetary Fund.
Kenyan Finance Minister Njuguna Ndungu said that Kenya may receive funds from the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other development partners between January and March 2024. These inflows are expected to significantly strengthen Kenya’s foreign exchange reserves.
03 Citigroup will lay off 20,000 people
According to the British "Financial Times" report, Citigroup recently said that the bank will lay off at least 20,000 people, accounting for about 10% of its total employees. The layoffs could cost up to $1.8 billion, but are expected to result in annual savings of $2.5 billion by 2026.
According to reports, in order to further reduce costs and increase efficiency, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser is also seeking to streamline Citigroup’s huge global business. Citigroup is currently withdrawing from consumer banking business in many countries and regions.
04 Britain will continue to provide 2.5 billion pounds of military aid to Ukraine
According to RIA Novosti, British Prime Minister Sunak and Ukrainian President Zelensky signed a 10-year security cooperation agreement in Kiev recently. According to the agreement, the UK will continue to provide 2.5 billion pounds of military assistance to Ukraine in 2024.
According to reports, at least 200 million pounds of the 2.5 billion pounds in military aid will be used for drones. This will be the largest batch of drones delivered by the UK to Ukraine, most of which are expected to be manufactured in the UK.
On January 13, 2024 local time, global asset management giant BlackRock announced the appointment of Chen Huilan as head of Asia Pacific, replacing Rachel Lord, who will be transferred to London as head of BlackRock's international business. At the same time, Andrew Landman and Hiroyuki Shimizu were appointed as deputy heads of Asia Pacific, with immediate effect.
According to reports, after being promoted to head of Asia Pacific, Chen Huilan will be based in Hong Kong and be responsible for leading BlackRock’s Asia Pacific business and managing the all-round development of various businesses, customers, investment teams and operating platforms.
06 Japan earthquake has killed at least 220 people
According to Japan's Kyodo News Agency, the Ishikawa Prefectural Government of Japan recently stated that as of 2 pm local time on January 13, 2024, the death toll caused by the Noto Peninsula earthquake reached 220, and 26 people are still missing.
According to reports, because the disaster was more serious than initially estimated, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that the Noto Peninsula earthquake would be designated as an "extremely serious disaster" and announced that he would promote reconstruction work and increase the state's subsidy rate for road and farmland repair projects.
07 Hungary’s CPI in 2023 will be 17.6%
Statistics recently released by the Hungarian Central Bureau of Statistics show that driven by rising food and energy prices, the country's consumer price index (CPI) increased by 17.6% in 2023 compared with the previous year. Data also showed that Hungary's CPI rose by 5.5% year-on-year in December 2023, lower than market expectations.
Hungarian Minister of National Economy Nagy Marton said that the Hungarian government promised to reduce the inflation rate to single digits by the end of 2023, and this goal has been achieved. He said the government had adopted "effective and successful tools" to bring inflation down quickly.
08 The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has killed 24,190 Palestinians
According to the Palestinian News Agency, since the new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out on October 7, 2023, 24,190 Palestinians have been killed and more than 64,000 injured.
According to reports, the Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip resulted in the deaths of 23,843 Palestinians, more than 60,000 others were injured, and more than 10,000 people were missing; in the West Bank, the Israeli military operations resulted in the deaths of 347 people, including 83 children. , nearly 4,000 people were injured. About 1.93 million Gaza residents have been displaced, accounting for 85% of the total population of the Gaza Strip.
